Uphaar Cinema Fire - The Fire Incident

The Fire Incident

The fire broke out at 5:10 pm. According to reports, it was caused when a 1000 kVA electricity transformer, maintained by the Delhi Vidyut Board (electricity Board) (DVB), and housed in the theatre’s overcrowded basement car park, burst, and engulfed some 20 cars, where some 36 cars were parked instead of the admissible 18. The fire eventually spread to the five-storey building which housed the cinema hall and several offices. Most of the victims were trapped on the balcony and died due to suffocation as they tried to reach dimly marked exits to escape the smoke and fire. and found the doors locked.

An off-duty Capt. Manjinder Singh Bhinder of the 61st Cavalry of the Indian army and a talented horse-rider, out celebrating his success at a recent national games with his family and a junior officer at the movie hall, gave his and his family's lives up saving over a 150 people, on his personal initiative.

Rushing out along with his family at first, realising the gravity of the unfolding tragedy, he and his people went back inside, and tried to set order and guide people out to safety.

Fire services were delayed due to the heavy evening traffic and the location of the cinema hall, situated in one of the busiest areas of South Delhi. At least 48 fire tenders were pressed into service at 5.20 p.m. and it took them over an hour to put out the fire. Later the dead and the injured were rushed to the nearby All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) and Safdarjung Hospital, where scenes of chaos and pandemonium followed, as relatives and family members of the victims scurried around to look for known faces.

A small fire had earlier broken out in the morning hours in the electrical transformer, which was soon put out and repairs carried out by DVB officials. Hours later oil spilled from the transformer and caught fire.